VIDEO: Pilot pulls off ‘textbook emergency landing’ on Minnesota interstate
A single-engine plane makes an emergency landing on northbound Interstate 35W in Minnesota. AP
A small plane made an emergency landing on a Minnesota interstate without leaving any damage or loss of life on Wednesday night.
The pilot of the plane has been identified as an award-winning member of the US aerobatics flying team.
The plane, believed to be running on a single-engine, landed and hit a vehicle.
The highway was temporary was closed due to investigation and clean up.
Two people were on board were unhurt.
Craig Gifford, 52, is a competitive aerobatic pilot, which involves flying aircraft in a series of manoeuvre.
Gifford is a Minneapolis resident.
Experimental Aircraft Association spokesman Dick Knapinski said Gifford represented the US in international competition in 2017 and 2019.
Knapinski said pilots take aerobatic training lessons to learn how to better manoeuvre aircraft in emergency situations, which he said explains how Gifford’s skills helped him pull off the "textbook emergency landing” on the interstate Wednesday night.
"Pilots are trained to deal with emergency engine problems and things like that if you have to make an emergency landing, and so the combination of that training and certainly (Gifford’s) aerobatic training really paid off in this situation,” he said.
Gifford declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation into the incident by the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation and Safety Board.
